The Daughter of Poseidon: Lightning Thief
by BansheeBae15
Summary: Percy was just a girl who stood out in the worst ways. Then everything goes wrong and people start calling her a hero, when really? She's just trying to keep her head above water.
1. Percy - You're a Demigod

"My name is Perseus Jackson, but I've always preferred Percy. I'm from New York City, where I was raised by my mother, Sally Jackson. I never knew my father. I've never attended the same school twice, because I'm a jinx," Percy looked her reflection in the eye and took a deep breath. "I am a demigod."

Her reflection didn't change. She was still too skinny and her short black hair was still a mess. She still had small scars over her hands and elbows. There was nothing remarkable about her at all, but somehow she ended up in a camp of heroes. She was a demigod and her best friend was a satyr and she fought the Minotaur and her mother was dead _and she needed to keep breathing around the lump in her throat before she passed out again_.

Leaning against the sink, Percy focused on filling her lungs. She turned on the cold water and splashed some over her face. A large part of her was still waiting to wake up, but Chiron the millennia-old freaking _centaur_ , told her that would wear off. She hoped it was soon.

A knock made her look back up. Using a hand towel, she dried her face and opened the bathroom door.

"Andy, what's good?" She said with a strained grin.

"It's 'Andrew'. Mr. D said you're out of the Big House tonight, so I need to introduce you to Luke," Andrew said shortly. looked mildly uncomfortable for a moment. "Luke's a little... weird, but she'll take good care of you while you're in the Hermes Cabin."

"She?"

Andrew acted like he didn't hear her, just turned and started to walk away. Not having much choice, Percy quickly grabbed the shoe box she was keeping her things in and followed the boy to the sword arena. He kept a brisk pace, not leaving her a lot of time to look around. Still, Percy couldn't help but study all the people she walked by. Everyone seemed to be so happy, chatting and smiling, as if nothing was wrong. When they caught sight of Percy, though, they would immediately start whispering to one another. It was like she was some museum piece to be gawked at, rather than a girl who'd just been thrown into some strange world of eternal sunshine and monsters.

Percy thought that it wasn't worth it.

When they finally reached the arena, Percy let herself get distracted by the building. It was beautiful, carved stone and shimmering bronze inlays. She'd only seen places like it in movies, but even Hollywood couldn't compare to the towering walls and polished wooden benches in the spectator areas. She was torn between awe and hatred.

When the pair made it to the floor of the arena, Percy finally turned her attention from her surroundings to the commotion they were headed towards. There was a large group of campers all dressed in jeans and ridiculously bright orange t-shirts mixed with worn leather armor. They were surrounding two people sparring, the taller one with a long sword and the other, broader one had a spear.

"That one is Luke," Andrew told her, pointing to the tall one. Percy squinted at the pair. "The other is Clarisse, from Ares Cabin. They've got a long standing… frienemy-thing going. Nobody misses their fights if they can help it. Even Mr. D shows up sometimes."

Percy watched, half amazed, as Clarisse stabbed forward and Luke danced to the side, shouting out a taunt. She quickly made a downward slash towards Clarisse, but the other girl blocked it with her spear shaft and shifted her thumb. There was a soft 'zzzpt' sound and Luke jumped back quickly.

"Cheat!" Luke said with a laugh. Clarisse smirked, but before she had a chance to say anything, Andrew stepped in, pulling Percy with him.

He raised his voice loud enough for everyone to hear, "Calling it a draw for today, folks, get back to your regularly scheduled activities."

"You ain't in charge here, Chase," Clarisse said with a scowl. Percy didn't know whether or not she was actually scared of the Ares girl. She didn't look any older than Percy, but Clarisse was a little taller, a lot thicker, and definitely more muscled. On the other hand, with the choppy haircut and over use of camo, she also gave off the vibe of _trying too hard_. Andrew certainly didn't think much of her.

"I might not be in charge, but the powers that be want Luke to give the tour to Percy. And if I remember right, you have a rock climbing class in fifteen minutes, anyway. Off with you."

Luke started to chuckle as Clarisse stomped off and Percy turned to her. She quickly dropped her eyes in an effort not to stare. Luke had softly tanned skin and dirty blonde hair pulled into a messy bun, leaving her bangs loose. Her face was thin and delicately featured, but there was a thick scar running from her hairline to her jaw. It was pale and slightly jagged and tight at the edges when she smiled.

Percy jumped when Luke threw her arm over her shoulders.

"You must be Percy, yeah?" Luke grinned, "Grove's talked about you a lot. I would have come up and introduced myself before, but I don't really like being in the Big House. More specifically, the infirmary."

"That's okay. I wasn't up to visitors for most of it anyhow."

Looking back at Andrew and seeing the sour look on his face caused Percy to snort. Luke reached over and ruffled the boy's curly blond hair, making Andrew flush and duck away.

"Look, Luke, I've got to get to the stables soon. You know if one of us isn't there, the Stolls will try and talk the others into something ridiculous, like setting all the pegasi free again. Can you just make sure she's settled quickly?"

Luke agreed with a lazy salute, before turning back to Percy.

"So, is it true you fought the Beast of the Labyrinth all by yourself?"

Percy fidgeted a bit, surprised by the blunt attitude. She just shrugged and opened her shoe box to show Luke the horn. The older girl whistled as her eyebrows made a jump for her hairline.

"Now, that's impressive. Not many people would have been up for that, ever, but their first time out? No way," Luke shook her head. "And keeping it in an Adidas box? Really?"

"Grove got me the box. I'm more of a Vans person, myself."

"Fair."

"I'm curious about something."

"Can you ask about it while we walk?"

Percy nodded and the two girls started an easy stroll out of the arena. Luke looked completely at ease, despite that she was still sweaty and armor-clad. She looked like she was just walking around a park, rather than a mythic army camp.

"Okay," Percy started, trying to get back on track. "Can you tell me why nobody around here seems to like names?"

"Names have power," Luke said.

Percy shot Luke a deadpan look and the older girl sighed, pursing her lips.

"It's a pretty simple concept, but hard to put into words. It's just… well, you know that scene in _Peter Pan_ where they have to get a bunch of kids to believe in fairies to save Tinkerbell?"

"Yeah?"

"It's kind of like that. The gods and monsters and most other mythic creatures, they feed on belief. It's part of what gives them strength and keeps them alive. So, every time someone says their names, they get a little boost. The school year is always a big time for them all, because they're names and memories are being invoked so often and in such mass.

"As demigods, it's our job to fight monsters and not piss off the gods and get punished," Luke waved at a group of nymphs as they passed the woods. "So, we avoid speaking names. It helps keep the things we fight from getting tougher."

"Why would saying the name of a god be bad, then? Wouldn't they want the extra strength?"

The air around them seemed to get a little colder, but Luke kept smiling as she led Percy into a building. There was a plaque next to the door that read 'Armory' in ancient Greek.

"Naming them isn't exactly a bad thing, no, but the gods can be fickle and vicious. See, their fighting leaks into their feelings about the children of other gods. Like, say, a child of Athena saying the name of the Sea god too often might get them into trouble, because he and Andrew's mom have had a feud for ages. Or maybe a god feels like a demigod is getting too familiar with them and needs to be reminded that they aren't on the same level as us lowly mortals. So saying their names too much will just end up putting you on someone's radar, and that never ends well."

Percy blinked slowly, trying to digest it all. "But you just said Athena's name. And the cabins are named after each of them, right?"

"Yeah," Luke started taking off her armor, hanging it up, "but that's not quite the same thing. The cabins themselves are places of power for the gods, though very weak ones. Each is dedicated as a place for one of the twelve Olympians. So, using their names in reference to the cabins or their children is like referring to their temples or disciples rather than the actual gods."

"Huh."

"Yeah," Luke chuckled, "Anything else?"

"Can I get a list of titles I might need to know?"

"Sorry, you've just got to learn as you go. Not a bad idea, though, I might bring it up to Chiron later."

Percy sighed, "Glad to help."

Luke patted Percy's shoulder and lead her back outside.

* * *

"The fields are usually tended to by the Dionysus and Demeter cabins, but everyone chips in during the monthly harvests. Chiron usually tries to make it sound like a bonding thing, but we take bets on who can collect the most."

Percy raised her eyebrows. "Monthly?"

"Magic."

"Right."

"That way is the forge, but only the Hephaestus kids really go there. It also has a habit of exploding every now and then, so, you know, caution."

They moved north, their pockets lined with stolen fruit for lunch. Between the two of them, they only managed about twenty strawberries, each one the size of a baby's fist and a brilliant red.

Luke sucked some juice off her fingers, "You know, that's probably why we sell the strawberries. For the most part, we're self-sufficient, but raw materials can be a pain to get a hold of for a place that doesn't technically exist and usually only deals in gold."

"You what?"

"Sell the-"

"The gold."

"Right. Drachma." Luke pulled out a few large golden coins from her pocket. "We've just about got the simplest currency in the world. Just the one kind of coin, anything else is bartered. We do keep a bank in case of quests, too, but... they don't happen that often any more."

Before Percy could press, Luke continued, "Those are the stables, where we keep the pegasi. You'll learn to ride first, then fly."

They passed a group of campers, all dressed in the same shirts again, who all seemed to be watching Andrew and a handsome boy leading a winged horse around. Luke waved at them and most of them waved back. One, a young Asian girl who'd bedazzled her shirt and wore too many bracelets, even winked.

"The boy there is Sel Beauregard. He runs the stables and is the councilor for the Aphrodite cabin. Right beyond that is the forest. It's filled with all sorts of things, some for training, some just because that's where they live. No entrance without permission."

They continued east along the border of the trees, passing the armory again but not going as far as the beach. Percy suddenly remembered thinking that it looked like the sky and the sea were fighting. Maybe they were.

They came up on a pavilion with thick gleaming pillars and an open roof. Twelve tables of polished mosaic were set in an oval around a large fire pit. A few campers were cleaning everything, directed by a woman with dark green skin and flowers growing in her hair.

"This is the dining hall. I'll show you proper etiquette tonight, but, basically, it's separated by godly parent. You, as an unclaimed, will sit with us at the Hermes table over there. Mr. D usually sits at table twelve with his kids."

"He eats with us?"

"Yup. Chiron and most of the nature spirits eat with him, too. Which reminds me: if you ever see woman trying to lure you into the woods, ignore them. The nymphs aren't that bad, but maeands will show up sometimes and they tend to be violent."

"Uh... right." said Percy. "Stranger Danger."

Luke grinned and nodded.

As they left the other end of the pavilion, someone came running towards them. Her long dreadlocks streamed behind her and her hooves pounded the cobbled path.

"Grove!" Percy shouted, rushing down the last way to her friend.

The girl panted, but smiled when she hugged Percy, "Hey! I would have meet you with Andrew, but... Well."

"You don't like the Big House?"

"Yeah." Grove smiled sheepishly.

Luke came up to them, patting Grove's shoulder. "It's good to have you back. How was the outside world?"

Grove shrugged halfheartedly. "It's alright. I prefer it here, though."

"How'd the hearing go?" Percy asked.

"Not great," she answered grumpily.

Luke blinked. "Hearing? Not the Council."

Grove nodded.

"What happened?"

"They don't think I did my job right with Percy. She protected me more than I protected her."

Percy opened her mouth to protest, but Grove barreled on.

"In the end they called Mr. D in to break the tie. He said that I hadn't succeeded or failed yet, so we're still bound together. I'm stuck unless you get a quest and I somehow help."

"But... Luke said people don't get quests anymore."

Grove ducked her head. "Yeah, but. They do happen sometimes. I mean, they're not much, but that should just make it easier, right? Not that you'd want me on a quest, even if you got one, bu-"

"Of course I'd want you to come with!"

Luke frowned. "Quests only happen once every other year or so, and never to anyone so young. Plus, being unclaimed halves your chances again."

"But there is still a chance. I'll do what I can, G. Promise."

Grove tried to smile. "You're on the tour, right? I can take it from here if you want to go back to the arena."

"Thanks, kid," Luke said with a grin. Grove rolled her eyes. "I'll catch you later, Percy."

Percy waved as the older girl ran off. "So, where to next?"

Hooking an arm over Percy's shoulder, Grove lead her away from the hall.

"You can see the climbing wall from here, but you can't go on that until Chiron says you're ready. Too many injures."

"Is that lava?"

"Don't worry, that'll be turned off the first few times."

They started to head back towards the Big House. They came up on an open air theater with six rows of polished pine benches circling a round dais in the middle. In the very center was another fire pit, though this one had obviously been polished.

"The amphitheater is where we do nightly singalongs. Technically anyone can lead them, but it's usually the Apollo cabin making us all sing praise to their dad. Not that there's anything wrong with that, he is the god of music, but just once it'd be nice to get some Hillary Duff."

Percy stifled a laugh, trying to nod seriously. Not that it mattered, since Grove was waving at a satyr playing a lute near the bottom. The satyr froze. There was a tense second where Percy thought she might have to punch a stranger, but he just tilted his head back towards them sharply and went back to playing. Percy felt Grove relax as they walked on.

"That's the canoe lake, over there," Grove pointed unnecessarily. There were some people out in the water, but the most interesting thing was by the dock. A group of blue and green people were gathered there, giggling. They were beautiful, with long hair that flowed like they were still underwater. They winked and blew kisses at Percy and Grove.

"It's fed through the creek and taken care of by the naiads. They're awful flirts, the lot, but they don't try to drown people like some of the wild ones. Not if you're polite to them, anyway."

A few of the naiads had knocked over two people in a canoe.

"This is weird," Percy said.

"You'll get used to it," said Grove.

Percy shook her head, watching the clouds. There weren't any over the camp, but all around it they were thick, dark, and gray. It was like they were standing in a vortex of some kind, sunny and warm when everything outside was tearing itself apart.

"You know the Big House," Grove pointed to the left side of the path, "And the volleyball court is pretty self-explanatory. We have summer tournaments, but Ares and Apollo teams are the only real competition. Some times the Athena or Hermes cabins will luck out, and the Hunters always kick our butts when they visit. That's the arts and crafts pavilion."

To the right side of the path was a low, open building, filled with campers painting and sculpting things that Percy swore could go straight to the MoMA. A few of them were playing musical instruments and one person seemed to be making a life-size cyclops out of paper mache.

"So weird," Percy sighed.


	2. From the Toilet-

The Hermes cabin was warm and clustered. The walls were covered in posters of landscapes and traveling brochures and almost every surface had things on it: jewelry, books, headbands, CDs and DVDs (though nothing to play them on), notebooks, figurines. There was a dragon statue set next to a small Thor toy that looked to be mid-fight and, for reasons Percy couldn't possibly fathom, a small stack of metal cubes about the size of dice. She couldn't hope to count all of the stuffed animals that were littered everywhere. On top of that, any space that wasn't covered in junk had a sleeping bag on it.

Percy's sleeping bag was at least close to a window, with a good view of the stars. Her shoe box was tucked safely into the bottom of it, along with the rest of her clothes. Well, Grove's clothes, but they were hers until she could get her hands on more.

"Seriously, Percy, if you don't get up soon, you're going to miss breakfast."

Percy shifted, trying to crawl further into the sleeping bag, "Ugh. I don't remember sleep being this exhausting."

Luke laughed, poking at the younger girl's hip with her toe. "Haven't you ever been to camp before?"

"No."

"A crowded sleep over?"

"No."

"Camping?"

"Gods, no."

Percy finally sat up, stretching her arms above her head. Parts of her she didn't even know she had were stiff and she was half convinced she had been laying right on top of one of those little steel cubes. Still, the threat of loosing food was a compelling one.

Luke rolled her eyes as Percy made a show of standing and stretching more, groaning about all her aches.

"You know where the showers are, right?" Percy nodded and Luke turned away. "Head that way. I'll stall the nymphs cleaning the pavilion, but hurry. Even my charms won't work forever."

With a wave, Luke ran out. Percy rolled her shoulders one last time before picking out something to change into and heading out herself. She managed to step on a watch, two gossip magazines, and, most bewildering, a wilting flower chain before reaching the door.

It was another flawless day inside the camp boundaries. Percy could see heavy rain and fast moving clouds in the periphery of the sky, but over head it was robin's egg blue. There was a soft breeze coming in from the west, bringing the smell of strawberries and, unfortunately, the stables with it.

The showers were almost a straight shot forward from the Hermes cabin door, so Percy decided to just cut between the Silver Cabin and the Dollhouse. She made a mental note to learn the names of all of them soon.

The camp bathrooms were cleaner than Percy would have expected considering just the sheer number of people using them, but they were still public bathrooms. The walls were covered in handwriting, some in English, some in ancient Greek, and some bits were just crude drawings. The normalcy would almost be welcome if Percy didn't hate public bathrooms so much.

Percy had gotten halfway through taking her shirt off when she remembered that nobody had told her what to do with dirty laundry. Or where to get a towel. Or anything else she would need to get really clean. She dropped her shirt back and sighed. She ran a hand through her hair carefully.

Before she could pick the best way to proceed, someone grabbed her shirt and pulled her backwards. She stumbled against whoever it was and noticed that four more people were starting to surround them.

"Well, well," said Clarisse, her quiet voice almost right in Percy's ear. "If it isn't the newbie."

Percy didn't bother trying to struggle yet. Short of slipping out of her shirt, there wasn't much chance of getting away, and she didn't think running back to cabin eleven topless was any better than what Clarisse might be planning. Besides, she'd been the new girl enough to know that this would be her real first impression on the campers.

So she sneered, "And here I thought that smell was the toilets."

"Funny you should mention those," Clarisse said pleasantly, even as she tightened her grip. "'Cause we've got this little initiation process. Don't we?"

The others nodded and laughed as Clarisse started to pull the smaller girl out of the shower area. Percy didn't make it easy, but didn't make it that hard either.

"What? Come on, I at least expected something. Tell you what," Percy was shoved forward, but caught herself before she hit the ground. She turned quickly and looked back towards the door, then the high windows on the opposite wall. Both blocked by the other campers. Clarisse smirked. "I'll give you a fair shake, Prissy."

"Percy," she corrected automatically.

"Whatever. I've been wanting to take a swing at you since that flake told everybody what happened on the Hill. So we'll make a deal: you manage to knock me off my feet, we'll let you out," She smirked wider. "Otherwise..."

Percy knew how to fight better than most people. Her mother (breathe) had signed her up for defense classes about two years ago and they were something at which Percy had excelled. But Clarisse had a size advantage, cronies, and battle training, and who knew when she'd started? Plus, Andrew had said she was from the Ares cabin. God of War.

 _I'm so screwed_. "You're on."

Clarisse lunged first, which Percy expected. She managed to duck to the side then kick out at the older girl's ankle. It was a narrow miss and gave Clarisse enough time to throw a punch. Percy was too off balanced to dodge, so she turned her head with the hit to lesson the impact.

The other Ares kids were laughing again, but Percy was able to avoid the next two swings and finally saw an opening. Before Clarisse could right herself from her last attack, Percy punched her in the side, right under her ribs. It wasn't the softest place, but enough to knock the wind out of her for a moment.

In any other situation, that would have been enough. Percy would have had the time to start running and get somewhere safe. In this situation, it was enough to piss Clarisse off.

While the Minotaur had become uncoordinated in its' anger, Clarisse became more so. Clearly she hadn't been putting a lot of effort into trying to hit Percy before, confident in victory, but now Percy found herself unable to think of anything but getting out of the way. With each punch and kick, the gaps between Clarisse and her target became less. Finally, what little luck Percy had ran out.

Clarisse had managed to hook their ankles together and pull Percy's right leg out from under her. As she fell, she felt a sharp spike of panic.

The cronies cheered when Clarisse hauled the smaller girl back to her feet and started dragging her towards the last stall. This time Percy lashed out, digging her jagged nails into Clarisse's arms and kicking wildly, desperation welling in her chest. Nothing helped.

"Pathetic," Clarisse said, forcing Percy to kneel in front of the toilet. "Like this runt was ever Big Three material. The Beast probably fell over laughing the moment it saw her stupid face."

There was sniggering behind them, but Percy was more focused on getting away. She stared into the toilet, which had no doubt seen better days. _Oh, I am not going in there._

And everything exploded. The toilets, the sinks, the pipes in the walls. Clarisse screamed, bringing her hands up to protect her face. Percy curled into herself, pressing her head between her knees, having decided to wait it out. It wasn't until the ceiling plaster started to crumble around her that she decided to run.

Covering her head, she splashed her way out the door. A small group of campers had collected around the flooding building, watching the drenched Ares kids. Percy spotted Andrew watching her critically. Unfortunately, Clarisse saw her too.

"You!" Everyone turned as Clarisse started stomping back towards Percy, "What _the hell_ did you do, you-"

"That's enough, Miss La Rue," said Chiron, cantering up to the group. He scanned the crowed with a raised eyebrow. Percy swallowed. "Andrew, would you be so kind as to collect the councilors?"

Andrew nodded and taking off towards the dinning pavilion. Clarisse glared hard at Percy, water dripping off the ends of her stringy hair. Percy raised a hand to her own hair and tilted her head.

The latrine roof caved in.

* * *

Percy had never been less inclined to play games in her life. It didn't help that there were eighteen people crowded around the ping-pong table that took up the middle of the room.

Clarisse and the cronies (Percy wondered if she could slip them the suggestion for a band name) were standing behind a burly man who looked about twenty. She had just finished telling everyone that she had been talking to Percy alone when Percy had jumped her for no reason and the other four had only arrived when they heard the shouting.

Andrew, who was standing next to a tall woman in high-waist shorts and a crop top, scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"What is that one doing here anyway, Kane?" asked the burly guy, glaring at Andrew.

"He's going to be cabin six's next councilor," said the tall girl, shrugging.

"You're kidding. He's, like, ten."

"Age doesn't denote wisdom, Dex. Andrew has been at camp for five years. We've already voted, anyway; nothing for it now."

Dex raised an eyebrow at her before shrugging back.

"My point is," said Clarisse, clearly annoyed, "That Newbie is the one that blew up the bathroom. So what's going to happen to her?"

"I vote we don't do anything," said Charlotte Beckendorf, a thick fifteen year old with possibly the coolest mohawk Percy had ever seen and at least four piercings in either ear. She smiled softly at Percy, "The Hephaestus cabin has been petitioning to update the latrines since longer than I've been here. Give us a few helping hands and we'll have it fixed by tonight. Tomorrow morning if you let us add a hot tub."

Sel Beauregard grinned wickedly, "I would wait for that."

"How long for decent ventilation and self-cleaning toilets?" asked a curly haired girl named Anila, who was coloring a snowy valley in a ragged sketchbook.

Beckendorf tapped her chin, "Maybe we could add a sitting area? Some flowers for the smell?"

"Do you have any proof that she was the one who cause the pipes to burst?" asked one of Dionysus' kids, Pollux or Castor, Percy wasn't sure which.

"How else could she have stayed dry?" shouted one of the cronies.

Chiron and Mr. D shared a look.

"Those pipes are over fifty years old," said Beckendorf. "They probably just burst on their own."

"All at the same time?" Dex snorted.

Kane huffed, "Improbable, but not impossible."

"That still doesn't explain why she's dry," said a cute blonde, maybe seventeen, who was writing very fast into a college-ruled note book. "Also, I'd like to raise the issue of just recording these meetings. It'd save me a lot of hand-cramps."

"Give up on it, Lee. You want a recorder, bring one yourself," Anila said.

"Maybe," said Luke suddenly, staring Percy down with sharp interest. "Maybe it's because of her father."

Everyone turned to look at Percy, making her shrink back into her chair. Grove, who was sitting next to her, let out a worried bleat and grabbed her hand. Percy wasn't sure who she was comforting.

"You don't think..." Chiron asked Mr. D quietly.

"He wouldn't be the first," said Mr. D, taking a large drag from his Diet Coke before handing the can to Grove. The satyr took it gratefully. "But unless she gets claimed, there's nothing we can do. And really, that's the extent of my interest."

The god left the room without another word.

"That's it?" shouted Clarisse.

"No, it's not," said Chiron. "We still have to deal with your infractions and the damage done to camp property."

" _My_ infractions?"

"You may disagree all you like about the instigator, but the fact remains that any fighting outside of the arena or the forest is strictly prohibited. Both of you will help Ms. Beckendorf and her cabin fix the latrines."

Beckendorf grinned.

"No hot tub," Chiron added sternly, but he patted Beckendorf on the shoulder as he passed her.

"Shame," said Sel with a heavy sigh.

The cute blonde tucked away her notebook watching Dex and Kane walk out of the room holding hands through the corner of her eye. Clarisse and the other Ares kids stormed after them, followed by the Demeter girl with the sketchbook. Pollux, Castor, Beckendorf, and Sel all paused by Percy and Grove.

"You want to come and play volley ball with us?" asked one of the twins.

"Castor's team is down four points; he's hoping you can save him," said the other cheekily.

"That... sounds fun," Percy started glancing at Beckendorf. "But... I mean, what about...?"

Beckendorf smiled again, "We were in the middle of a game when the meeting was called. We'll start the reno after I kick your butts."

"In that case, we'd love to," said Luke, walking up behind them with Andrew. "If you don't mind a few more?"

"Not at all," said Sel, "But we should hurry before someone else takes the court."

* * *

Percy, Grove, Castor, and Sel managed to lose only by technicality, when the ball hit Grove in the head and popped on one of her small, but evidently sharp, horns. After a laughing fit, excessive apologies from both Grove and Beckendorf (who had spiked the ball when it hit her), and a promise of a rematch, everyone went their separate ways.

Heading back towards the cabins was an easy stroll. Beckendorf may have looked like an Amazon, ready to fight anyone who wrong-footed her, but she was sweet, level-headed, and funny. Rather than ask about the bathrooms or what happened on Half-Blood Hill, they talked about the up-coming _Batman Begins_ premier.

"I had tickets for the first showing," Percy whined. "I begged for weeks. All that effort, wasted."

Beckendorf chuckled. "Well, if you can bear waiting a few extra days, you can come watch it with us. We're basically bootleg masters. I can guarantee it will look just like theaters."

"Really? And Chiron doesn't mind?"

"He probably would if he knew."

Walking up to the cabin yard would probably always be a surreal experience. Eleven was the only one that actually looked like it belonged in a summer camp, which was comforting but made Percy feel insanely curious about the others. Demeter cabin reminded her of a hobbit hole or like a live-in vegetable garden. Ares looked like Boot Camp Gone Wild, with uneven blood colored paint, broken windows, a mounted boar head, and barbed wire on the roof. It looked even worse since it was between cabin three, which was long and low and tastefully decorated with sea shells, and cabin seven, which was like a log cabin made out of solid, shinning gold, almost identical to the silver one right across the way.

Number nine was short and square, made of large bricks. The windows were high and there were three smokestacks on the back, like a factory. It was even covered in graffiti, colorfully spray-painted tags, some stylized, some straightforward, and even one corner that looked like a Banksy tribute. Percy wondered if that was disrespectful, but Beckendorf didn't seem concerned, so she didn't bring it up.

She was a little disappointed that she wasn't allowed inside, but took the time to look around the courtyard. There was a statue garden, filled with minor gods, as though that would make up for them not having cabins or tables in the dining pavilion. The walk ways were lined with beautiful flowerbeds, perfectly manicured and tended to. At either end were two golden fountains, and in the middle was a large stone-lined fire pit being tended by a small girl with along stick.

The girl was a bit of an oddity. She wasn't dressed in camp colors, but looked more middle eastern than nymph-like. She was in matching coal-grey thawb and headdress, like the women Percy saw at the mosque down the street from her apartment.

Before Percy could dwell on it, Beckendorf came out leading eight other teens. It was the second smallest cabin Percy had seen yet, besides Dionysus', which was just the twins. Beckendorf shrugged when Percy mentioned it.

"Dad spends so much time trying to catch his wife cheating that he doesn't set aside a lot to cheat on her back."

Geni Devoux grinned, still wiping oil off her hand from whatever she'd been working on in the cabin. "They've got bunks to spare."

"Aren't you a Hermes kid?" asked Percy.

"Well, yeah," Geni said. "But I also grew up reading my mom's repair manuals. Parentage doesn't dictate all our hobbies, you know."

The girl next to her, who hadn't introduced herself yet, bumped Geni's shoulder.

"Not to say I don't occasionally provide tech support to any of my siblings inclined towards mischief," she amended. "I just enjoy some plausible deniability."

"Yeah, okay, but what I meant was, why are you allowed in the cabin when I'm not?" The unnamed girl grabbed Geni's hand. "Oh. Jake, quick, hold my hand so I can see the inside of the cabin."

Jake Mason, a twiggy kid about Percy's age, laughed, "I don't think it works that way."

Clarisse never did show up to help build the new toilets, but Percy thought that just made it better. By the time the plumbing was done, Percy had learned everybody's names as she ran back and forth between them, passing wrenches and new piping and water bottles.

As the day wore on, more people came over to lend a hand. Andrew brought over some people to help with dry wall and some tips on load baring walls and a few other things Percy didn't really listen to. Sel stopped by to help put the new stalls together, though none of his siblings joined until it was time to start painting and picking furniture for the shared lobby.

When dinner rolled around, Percy was exhausted and the bathrooms were starting to look more like a day spa. The 'no hot tub' rule had been circumvented by adding a large bath with jets, but no temperature regulation. Beckendorf pretended not to notice until Geni and her girlfriend, Nyssa, had gotten too far for them to just rip it out without adding hours to construction.

Percy and Geni were sitting at the Hermes table, heads down and content, when Luke dropped down on Percy's other side. She patted Percy on the shoulder harder than the younger girl thought strictly necessary. Everything was starting to ache, and she hadn't even done much more than play gopher.

"Rough day?" Luke asked.

"Mm," Percy grunted.

Two loud stomps rang through the pavilion. Everyone fell silent and turned to table twelve. Chiron offered a kind smile, before turning to the camp directer clearing his throat next to him. Percy didn't have a very good angle to see, since she refused to lift her head, but she was almost certain Mr. D was standing on a chair.

"Welcome, ingrates. Chiron has told me that all expected campers have arrived, even though the summer session isn't supposed to start until the first and I shouldn't have to deal with any of you for another three days. Honestly, you could show a little curtsy to the closest thing I get to a vacation.

"A few announcements. We only have two new campers since the Winter Solstice; one Braxton Higgs of Apollo, and Percila Johnson, Unclaimed." Chiron leaned over and whispered to him. "Right. Braeden Holmes and Percy Jackson. Welcome. Cabin nine says that the toilets are in working order, so no more trekking in and out of my house for any of you. Reminder that any and all unsupervised fighting is prohibited, apparently. Also, the welcome game of capture the flag is, as ever, on the first Friday in June, and all uninjured campers must participate. So, if you're not feeling up to snuff, hurry up and break something, you've only got a week. That's all."

With that, everyone moved to start sacrificing part of their dinner. Percy and Geni dragged themselves up, leaning heavily on each other.

"So, uh..." Percy frowned, stacking honey barbecue chicken on her plate. "Should I be worried about the capture the flag thing? Like, do I have to sign up on a team or whatever?"

"Nah, the teams are separated by cabin," said Geni.

Luke nodded, "It's us, Athena, and Apollo against everyone else. Satyrs are supposed to fill out the undermanned team, but the only one that usually does anything is in Canada."

"Though, they always offer to help the Hunters when they're here. Not that they need it," Geni carefully portioned off a quarter of her plate and tossed it into the fire. "We've never managed to bet them."

Percy picked the biggest piece of chicken and one of her corn cobs and preyed for her mother. As she walked on, she asked, "Who are the Hunters? Grove mentioned them yesterday."

Luke scowled, "The Hunters of Artemis. They're a matriarchal cult."

"Oh, shut up. Just because you decided they weren't for you doesn't mean they're bad," Geni interrupted. To Percy she added, "They're a bit like if nuns could form gangs. A bunch of girls who gave up romance and Earthly ties for an eternity fighting beside their goddess and their sisters. It's all very-"

"Cultish."

"Luke, this is why Zoe always shoots arrows at you."

"What do you mean 'eternity?'" Percy asked. They sat down back at table eleven, pressed tightly against each other with barely enough elbow room to eat. She told her cup to fill with blue Yoohoo, still surprised that it worked even after two meals.

"The Huntress grants her followers immortality. More or less. If they're injured to badly they can still die, but it has to be something very bad. They can rejoin the outside world anytime they please, too, or they can be forced out for breaking their oath."

A skinny girl across the table raised a pencil thin eyebrow at them, Why are we talking about the Hunters? What we should be talking about is Newbie blowing up the bathrooms."

"Yeah," said the near identical girl next to her. "How'd you even do that? Did someone tip you off to the initiation? Were you planning on it anyway? How did you plant bombs without getting caught by the Harpies?"

"I didn't d- wait, did you say Harpies?"

"Connie, she didn't do anything," Geni said around a mouthful of mashed potatoes. "Whatever happened isn't her fault."

Luke was staring at her again, hard and questioning. Percy tried to resist the urge to duck her head.

Connie turned to the girl next to her, "You buying that Tracy?"

Tracy stared at Percy, too close. "You know, I think I am. And doesn't that open up a realm of more interesting possibilities?"

"Hm. Ever blow up any other bathrooms?" Connie asked with far less interest than the question deserved on Percy's opinion.

She shook her head regardless. "No bathrooms. Had a weird incident with a fountain a few weeks before..." she gestured vaguely, like that could some how explain the last few days of her life.

Geni and Luke exchanged looks over her head.

"It wasn't anything huge! It was just... there was this bully at my old school who would pick on Grove and there may have been some pushing and... she ended up soaked. No big deal."

"But worth mentioning?" Tracy pressed.

"Well, I- Shut up."


End file.
